His Only Weakness
by Misty Mina
Summary: Fried's only weakness were scantily-clad women or so Lucy thought. But what if she found out his real weakness? Oneshot! First real and completed Fried/Lucy story. Runestar shipping!


**Disclaimer:** Fairy Tail is not mine! Stop accusing me of stealing the characters. _*hides all charas in her closet*_

**Author's note:** I know that this fanfiction probably won't get a single review and that's fine with me. All I wanted to say with this is that it's possible! Besides that, I have only seen one fanfiction with the pairing and sadly, it hadn't been finished. -_- So I hereby claim to be the first real Fried/Lucy writer! (With 'Love Ring' as the first story, even if it was crack.) And I do intend to write more about them. _*nods* _Enjoy! ^^

~o~o~o~

**His Only Weakness  
**By Misty Mina

Today should have been a day like all the others since they'd all returned from Tenrou island. Should have were the key words. Because Lucy saw something which made no sense. Well at first it didn't, but now that she was at home and thinking about it on her bed, she came to one conclusion.

Both, Cana and herself, were losers!

Earlier that day, she was on her way to a magic store. She'd been on enough missions to pay her rent and have some extra cash. Enough to purchase a new silver key. Missions with Erza earned her definitely more money than with Natsu.

She was about to round the corner when she heard the excited squeals of many girls. Peeking from a safe place, Lucy made sure everything was ok before she would continue on her way. The last time she'd heard so many squealing girls, was the time when she'd almost succumbed to a 'Charm' Spell. She didn't need a repeat of that.

The stellar mage couldn't believe her eyes. Yes, there were many girls and as expected they were trying to get a single man's attention. But it wasn't a stranger, or Loke like she'd expected. The spirit had a tendency to appear at random times without her noticing a thing.

It was none other than Fried Justine, the rune mage.

At first she pitied Fried. After all, she knew of his 'weakness'. At the S-class exam, he was clearly hesitant to attack them, because they were in their bikinis. Cana made use of it and both managed to beat him and Bixlow. Perhaps it was a dirty trick, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

Now, it was different.

There were many girls and also some which had a scandalous choice of clothes. Let's say, not much was left to a man's imagination. Compared to their attire, bikinis were modest.

However Fried didn't show the same reaction as in the exam. No blushing, no stuttering, not even an embarrassed side glance. He pretty much ignored them all, as if they were nonexistent. One or two were even daring enough to glomp him and he merely shrugged them off.

Polite.

Distant.

Untouchable.

She turned tail and ran home, forgotten were the new key and the magic shop.

Lucy may be blond, but she wasn't stupid. All that, the girls and his lack of reaction meant just one thing.

It meant Fried Justine had no weakness!

He wasn't shy. He could've beaten them single-handedly without Bixlow. The truth was that Cana and her had done nothing to actually earn a victory.

Fried 'let' them win!

The realization stung Lucy more than she cared to admit.

The stellar mage took her blanket and wrapped it tightly around herself. A sad excuse for a hug.

She couldn't tell this to anyone! Especially not Cana! If the card user ever heard of this, she'd be heartbroken. She'd tried so hard, to prove that she was worthy of being called Gildart's daughter. Lucy couldn't tell her that it was all a farce. What had the rune mage been thinking? This was much worse than just losing.

The blond lay down and buried her face into her pillow.

Lucy had to accept it.

She was weak!

A holder mage who was nothing without her keys and couldn't rely on her own strength. Instead she had to borrow the strength of others.

Partly, it felt like Fried was mocking her. Telling her through his actions, that she was no opponent for him and he could show some pity by letting them win for now. On the other hand, he'd spoiled his own chances of being an S-class mage and being the one to take Laxus' place in their group.

What were his motives? Had she misjudged his character? Even though she only got to know him after the Battle of Fairy Tail, she still thought he was quite a decent guy.

He was different.

Most of the male guild members were loud, impudent and some were even perverted. Always looking for a fight and not one day went by without a brawl.

The rune mage was the opposite. Reserved, polite, well mannered and honorable. He skillfully avoided being dragged into the daily brawls and had never lost his composure, no matter what the others did.

It hurt to think he'd looked down upon her the whole time.

Lucy sighed. This was getting her nowhere. Thinking about it won't give her the answers she needed. She had to talk to him! She just had to know the reason. Turning around she blew out the candle on her nightstand. Tomorrow was a day as well and then she would get her answers, one way or another!

~o~o~o~

It took Lucy almost all of her willpower, but she managed to ask the aloof script mage to meet her in the park. The farther from the guild the better. She knew that those walls had ears and would do little to nothing to keep their discussion secret. To say the green haired man looked surprised would've been an understatement. Shocked was more like it. A rare expression on his handsome face.

The sun began to set and the stellar mage sat on a bench by the fountain. Where was he? Fried should have been here already. Normally it was the woman's part to be late. Lucy shook her head in embarrassment. She did not just think that, did she? That sounded like they were on a date, not like she had a bone to pick with him.

Lucy hadn't noticed his arrival until he cleared his throat. It almost made her jump out of her skin.

"My apologies, I made you wait." Polite as always and not making up any half hearted excuses.

Lucy stood up and shook her head.

"It's alright."

There was an awkward silence between them. Lucy didn't know how to start, she didn't think he would really agree to listen to her. Perhaps she should just say what was on her mind and lift a burden from her shoulders.

"I, ...I know!" She confessed. Not really the smartest thing to say. She'd blurted out the first thing on her mind. Now he'd either be confused or think she finally lost it. After all, there were bets in their guild about when Natsu would drive her into madness.

However the reaction was neither. He looked to the side, not even able to look into her eyes. What? Wasn't she even worth that much? Perhaps she was right after all and Fried really looked down upon most people.

"Really?..." He mumbled. At the moment, he looked like a kid who got caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Could he already guess what she wanted to say? Maybe there was still something good in him left if he had the heart to feel guilty.

Now or never.

"I know what you did Fried. ...How could you?"

Now came the confused reaction she'd expected seconds ago. This time he looked at her directly.

"What do you mean?"

Lucy balled up her fists. He had no idea what she was talking about! Unreasonable anger overcame her.

"What I mean? The S-class exam, of course! You, ...you, ...just gave up. You let us win, just like that. ...Why?" It sounded sad, almost broken. But she was just so angry at him. Angry enough to have tears in her eyes.

The usually stoic mage looked like he'd been slapped in the face. Instead of answering her, he just looked down. His silence made Lucy's blood boil and let her forget her good upbringing.

"You were just pretending, right? Made us believe you couldn't fight us. That we actually had a chance. ...IT WAS ALL A LIE!" She shouted. In some kind of way, she felt betrayed and it hurt. Hurt enough to let a few stray tears fall.

How dare he? How could he stay silent like that? ...But that was like him, wasn't it? Always the strong and silent one. To her surprise, he shattered her image of him quickly.

"NO! ...I ...I owed Cana that much. The chance to achieve her dream! I'd made up my mind before we came to that god forsaken island! To do anything to help her, even if it meant cheating!"

Loud, cursing, in panic and dishonest. Not the rune mage she knew. It was refreshing to see this other side of him as well. And yet, his motive was still honorable. She knew of Cana's fight against him, of her defeat and her wounds. Yes, he owed the card user ten times over.

But not her. Not Lucy Heartfilia.

He could have just fought her and let Cana defeat him in the end. Not only would it have been more convincing, it would have eased her mind. To know she did her best. To help her friend as best as she could. To be an opponent who was worth his time.

"You don't owe me anything! So why couldn't you just fight me?" It was not that Lucy liked to fight. But she couldn't overlook the fact that her skills as mage were being questioned here. She had an honor as well and it was about time she defended it.

Fried's visible eye darted left and right as if searching for the right words or a way out of this situation. In the end, he sighed heavily.

"It's ...not so easy to explain..."

"Try me!" She challenged. She wasn't stupid no matter how many blonde jokes in the world existed. Wiping the two tears away she waited for his answer.

Sighing once more he looked again to the side and, ...was that a faint red hue on his cheeks? He looked exactly like that time when they challenged him in their bikinis. Embarrassed, almost bashful.

"I did lie, ...to Cana that is. ...Not to you." If she was just a blond ditz, she wouldn't have gotten the meaning. Wouldn't understand what he was implying.

If she interpreted his words right, it would mean he could've resisted Cana, ...but not her? If Cana had been alone, he would've been his usual, stoic self. And if she had been there by herself then... then she would have seen the same person who stood before her. The same person who couldn't look into her eyes. Lucy tried to remember. Fried had looked at her, but only once. And then? ...Then, ...then he had avoided her gaze the whole mock fight long.

The rune mage turned around, he hadn't meant to tell her anything. But now, he'd showed his only weakness. Perhaps it was better to go on like nothing happened. When she asked him to come to the park, he'd been hopeful. And when she told him she knew, he assumed she meant his attraction towards her. Stupid, he knew.

"Forget what I said, ...it's better this way." Just when he wanted to leave he felt a tug on his left sleeve. Looking down he saw her hand, with the bright Fairy Tail crest on it, holding onto the dark red fabric, pleading him to stay.

"Tell me the truth, ...you owe me that much." Lucy didn't believe him. What she'd heard had to be a farfetched lie, right?

Fried took a deep breath. How he wished to use his magic to disappear. But the stellar mage was right. He'd tricked them. Even though he'd repaid his debt to Cana with a lie, he was indebted to Lucy now by dragging her into it. Out of the frying pan and into the fire. How foolish of him.

"I didn't lie to you. ...You've found my weakness, ...you are my weakness! The truth is, ...I desire, adore and fear you at the same time." Fried truly feared the stellar princess, for she held the only part in her delicate hands that differentiated him from his second form. The human heart which was about to stop any moment now while he waited for her crushing reply.

Lucy was overwhelmed and flattered by his confession and choice of words. Truly a script mage at heart. She had read about too many I-like, I-love and I-need-you's. This was different. 'He' was different, just like she thought.

He was still not looking at her and now she understood. It was all true! Fried couldn't fight her, ...because she'd already won. Him, his heart, everything.

"If you excuse me, I think I've humiliated myself enough for one day." Fried even sounded defeated. Her silence spoke louder to him than the greatest thunderstorm.

Lucy didn't let go, she just couldn't. There was still something she needed to know.

"Did you mean it? All of it?" Her heart was hammering in her chest. If he denied everything now, she swore she would call all of her stellar spirits at once.

Did she still doubt his words? Really, she of all people should know that he rarely spoke, much less what's on his mind.

"My word is law, ...even to me." Script magic was a delicate art and with runes even more so. If the user of this kind of magic didn't mean what they thought and said, their magic could turn against them. Well he'd never claimed to be weak against women, now did he? He merely acted, Cana assumed and that was the lie.

Lucy realized that she knew only the man who was a member of the Raijinshuu. Not the man behind his emotionally distant mask. Perhaps Mirajane was the only one who had seen what the script mage tried to hide. Now she knew as well and she wanted to know more!

"That would settle half of your debt!" Lucy knew exactly how to get him.

Fried's face didn't show anything, but his green eyes spoke of concern. He was almost afraid to ask, but no matter what she wanted, be it money, a new key or the moon, he knew he'd give her all that and much more.

"...And the other half?"

The Stellar princess linked her arm in his and leaned against his left side.

"The chance to get to know the real Fried Justine."

Being vocally speechless was nothing new for the rune mage, but being also speechless in his own mind was certainly a new experience. Was this just pity on her side? Fried knew she was kind, but to that extent? Searching her face he came to an easy solution. He had nothing to lose.

"As you wish."

As much as Fried tried to hide it, Lucy could see a fleeting smile on his lips. It was a start, but one day she'd make him smile for real. That was a promise and she always made sure to keep them.

The sun had finally set and the first stars twinkled in the sky. The day was over and the night began.

"Walk me home?" she asked coyly.

"I'd be honored, mademoiselle."

Today should have been a day like all the others. Yet it had been different and much better than both mages had expected.

~o~o~o~

**Owari**

What do you say? Sappy isn't it? So much fluff it puts Aries to shame! XD

Aries: "Sumimasen!" XO

I love the thought of Fried having a french touch to him. ^^ Not overly so, just enough to notice. I thank the cosplayers who posed for the image cover and my friend on Gaia for the photoshop help. And one more thing. I thought hard of a name for this pairing as well. Maybe you've seen that in other fandoms, Yugioh for example. Puzzle shipping, puppy shipping, thief shipping and so on. And I think 'Runestar shipping' has a nice ring to it. ^^


End file.
